Interview with Maaya Sakamoto (Kisaragi Mio), Rumi Okubo (Momoi Shinju), and Aimi Numakura (Mikuni Sara) for the summer anime "There's Mio Downstairs"! Realistic college student romantic drama in anime!

This work is a Japanese dubbed version of a coming-of-age love story based on the Korean webtoon "Iduna," which was made into an anime in China and recorded a hit with 60 million views. It depicts a coming-of-age story centering on the main character, university student Yo Sugiura, and the three heroines (Mio Kisaragi, Shinju Momoi, and Sara Mikuni).

With the broadcast just around the corner, Akiba Research Institute asked Maaya Sakamoto (Kisaragi Mio), Rumi Okubo (Momoi Shinju), and Aimi Numakura (Mikuni Sara), who play the three heroines, to talk about their impressions of the heroines and Yoh.

Introduction

You Sugiura enrolls in Aoba University, chasing after Momoi Shinju, a senior whom she admires. One day, however, she meets Kisaragi Mio, a former popular idol, in front of her rooming house. She has retired from show business and is living on the first floor of the same lodgings as Yo, away from the public eye.

Mio is a mysterious figure who first took an aggressive stance toward Yo and then approached her, asking to be friends. Pearl tries to maintain a certain distance from Yo while smiling at her. And then there is Mikuni Sara, a senior who has just broken up with a boyfriend she met at a blind date... What will be the outcome of these three heroines and Yoh's adolescence?

Character Introduction

KISARAGI Mio (CV. SAKAMOTO Maaya)

A former member of the popular idol group Dream Suite. For some reason, she retired from show business and lives on the first floor of the same boarding house as Yo, away from the public eye. She is a beautiful girl that everyone looks up to, but she is unstable and sometimes acts out of character.

Yo Sugiura (CV: Keisuke Kawamoto)

An ordinary college freshman. He has been in love with Shinju, a senior whom he has admired since high school, and has followed her to Aoba University. Although she is somewhat indecisive, she is pure, kind, and well-liked by everyone.

Momoi Shinju (CV: Rumi Okubo)

A senior whom Yoh admires. She is bright and friendly, and has many friends. She quickly becomes friends with Mio and the three of them play together. She is a dedicated student, and her grades are almost all A+, but she has a problem.

Sara Mikuni (CV. Aimi Numakura)

A senior whom Yoh met at a blind date party she attended. A student of fashion at Aoba University, she has a penchant for fashion, but despite her seemingly flamboyant atmosphere, she has a pure personality. She has just had her heart broken and is looking to meet someone new, and is curious about Yo.

When Mio stares at him and wants to know ...... it's over!

--This work is a coming-of-age love story based on a Korean webtoon, and its anime adaptation in China was also very popular. There are many coming-of-age love stories out there, but what do you find attractive about this work?

SAKAMOTO: I felt that it is a very realistic drama that gives a sense of life and what the life of a normal college student is like. Although it is a love story, each of the characters has their own life issues, and readers and viewers can relate to the characters who are similar to themselves and watch their adolescence. There are many aspects of the production and presentation that I think are a little different from Japanese anime, and I think the appeal of this work is that it can be seen in a fresh way.

Okubo: In Korea, there is also a TV drama version, and Mr. Kawamoto, who plays the main character, Yo, dubbed for the TV show there as well. School love stories are also popular in Japanese light novels, but when I first read the original manga of this work, I felt that the heroines were a bit more mature and realistic than those (heroines in light novels). Yo-kun also starts out with someone he really likes, and I thought this work would be a love story between a normal man and a woman on the verge of adulthood.

Numakura: I have the impression that the anime is based on the realistic original story. Many of the songs are very mature, and even in the comical scenes, they are more colorful than the songs that are intended to heighten the tension. There are many romance anime in Japan, but I got the impression that they are a little different.

Maaya Sakamoto

--I would like to ask you about your impressions of the three heroines that you play. First of all, how did you feel about Mio?

SAKAMOTO: To be honest, there are many things about Mio that I don't understand. She is a very special kind of person, so I think that people who are watching her may wonder what she is thinking and why she is doing what she is doing. I think people who are watching him will wonder what he is thinking and why he is doing what he is doing. But I think people are attracted to her mysteriousness and fall for her more and more.

I think she knows that she is a little bit cute and acts in various ways, but she is not doing so because she really likes Yo. At first he seems to be testing her, and I feel that she is a person with a unique way of maintaining distance in communication due to her poor social skills. There's too much skinship, and for someone who acts quite concerned about Yang, he doesn't seem to start out as if he doesn't consider it a serious relationship. I wonder why he is like this for someone so young. I wonder if that is because she met many different people during her idol career and experienced a sense of frustration, which made her unable to open up her heart.

--Do you actually know any women like this around you?

Sakamoto: No, I have never seen her (laughs).

Okubo As expected, there are no such women in real life (laughs).

Numakura: It's not easy to meet such a woman, but if she stared at me straight in the eyes like this, I would be thrilled. Sara and Shinju both looked away from me a little, but Mio looked straight at me. I thought, "If she stares at me like that, it will be the end of me! (laughs).

Okubo Because she is so mysterious, I think readers and viewers will want to know more about her. but if you think that, it's the end of the story (laughs). I want to know! will continue for a long time, and when it accumulates, you will "like" Mio. It's hard to resist, isn't it? Just being a former idol has a considerable impact, and I think the problem is that they are too attractive.

Rumi Okubo

--Rumi Okubo: It seems that there are girls who naturally act in such a way to attract people's attention, but it is surprising that there are not many of them.

Okubo: If they actually existed at school, they would be a very dangerous senior (laughs). She would be a circle crusher. It is possible that all the boys in the circle would like Mio .......

Sakamoto: But her attitude toward guys other than Yo is pretty bad (laughs). In that sense, she is not the type of person who would do that to anyone.

Okubo That's true. He is single-minded, so it is easy to get swamped, and I think the viewers will get swamped as well.

Numakura: Besides, as Yo-kun said, "He looks a little lonely," and he shows various expressions from time to time. She also feels like she needs to be protected, so I think that there is really no escaping from Mio (laugh).

--By the way, how do you see her as a female friend?

SAKAMOTO: She is cute when she is with other girls. And they open up to each other right away after having a few drinks.

Okubo They have a free spirit that laughs when they think they are angry, and they may get pushed around, but they are not random, so I think the girls can get along rather well with each other.

Numakura That's right.

What are your honest impressions of Pearl and Sara?

-What do you think about Pearl? She's the senior that Yo has always liked, but don't you have some thoughts about her attitude and feelings toward Yo from a woman's point of view?

Sakamoto: She's too nice. I can see why Yo likes her.

Okubo: Pearl likes Yo, but she draws the line because she doesn't want to bother Yo with things around her, and she can't be selfish. I think that if Pearl had said "I love you" to Yoh properly in the beginning, they would be able to get together right away, so that the story would end there. But she doesn't do so because she is thinking of Yang.

She is usually friendly and has many friends. At first, Mio is a little angry with him, but after a few drinks, he says things like, "I'm sorry for earlier, I love you," "I hate you too," and "Oh no, I hate you," and they become very good friends. Because of this quality of getting along with both men and women, there are moments when I wonder if I tend to care too much about others and neglect myself.

Numakura If a work is a work of art, it is not strange to have a heroine in the middle of the royal road. She is so good that I think most men would like her. In the original voice (the voice of the Chinese voice actress), she seemed a bit naughty, but when Rumi plays the role, she seems much cuter and more like a heroine. I think she will be the most popular. I think she will be the most popular. She is very cute, even in my opinion.

Sakamoto: I keep saying "Pearl is cute, Pearl is cute" (laughs). Pearl is the cutest. She is such a good girl that it is hard for me to watch her when she has a painful expression on her face. I want her to be happy.

Okubo That makes me happy! Thank you very much.

Numakura At first, I think there will be a lot of people cheering for Yo and Pearl.

Aimi Numakura.

--And of the three, I got the impression that Sara is the most ordinary college student.

Numakura That's right. Because she met Yo from scratch in terms of their relationship, and because she did what she did when she was drunk at a blind date, you would think that Sarara would have a strong personality, but in fact she is the most ordinary of the three. In fact, she is the most ordinary of the two. She is happy or sad at the things he says or does. Can we get into the love triangle of Yo-kun, Mio, and Pearl? Really? Isn't it difficult from here? I think so (laughs). (Laughs) That's how much Yo-kun doesn't have his eyes on Sara. But because he doesn't have her in his mind, he does things to her that he wouldn't do to someone he's interested in, and it makes her nervous, or he misunderstands her a little and goes off on a tangent. I hope I can make her look cute in that way.

--What is your impression of Sara?

Sakamoto: I think she seems to be the most liked by the girls.

Okubo That's right. Of course she is cute, but she also takes on a lot of damaging roles, and in a way she is the most mature, so you might think, "What is it? Shouldn't she be the happiest? I want her to be the happiest.

Also, I can see the gap between her and the other girls. When she is outside, at the university, or at a party,...... she wears glasses or changes her hairstyle depending on the occasion. I think it's also realistic that she uses a hair clip to hold her hair up just right. I think guys probably find that gap cute.

Numakura: But, despite her appearance, she is not aggressive. If you were more aggressive, wouldn't you have a chance at all? I would be happy if they would support us.

If the three of you were the same age as Yoh, what would you say about Yoh ......?

-What was your impression of the three of them, and what were you conscious of when you were playing them?

Sakamoto: Mio is a bit elusive, so especially in the beginning, I wondered to what extent she would say things in a way that would make Yang care about her. I tried various patterns such as "increase the sexiness by a certain percentage" and "decrease the sexiness by a certain percentage. I wanted her to feel like an older sister, but there were also unexpectedly comical scenes that are unique to anime, so I decided to change things up a bit. I wanted a serious scene in which she expresses her true feelings in a very quiet and calm manner, and a scene in which she suddenly tries to hit someone with a sake bottle in a very aggressive manner.

Okubo: As for Shinju, I basically try not to make her sexy at all. I think my first task was to "not get into a good mood with Yoh. Even though I had feelings for her, I didn't want her to get into that kind of mood, so I made sure to say "bye-bye" very simply when we parted. I tried to be as cute as possible so that people would think, "Pearl, you're so cute! I try to be as cute as possible, but in a light-hearted manner.

However, since this is a coming-of-age story with an emphasis on conversation, I received very detailed directions such as, "I want Yoh to swing around a little more in this scene," or "I want her to be more lighthearted in this scene. I mentioned earlier about the original sound, but there were times when I tried to improvise something that was not in the original sound, and it was sometimes used. I think we were challenged in many ways. We had to rearrange the dubbing based on the other voice actors' performances. That is one of the interesting aspects of dubbing, and we made it an important part of playing Pearl.

--It is both an animation and a dubbing. What did you think about when you were playing the role of Pearl?

Numakura: I think being a college student is a time to think about the rest of your life, and I think it is a time when every moment is sparkling and you are absorbed in it. I think it's a time when they are absorbed in their lives. It's like they are enjoying the day without thinking too much about it, or rather, they have a lighthearted feeling. I know it's a bad word to use, but Sarara also has a "haphazard" side, and she often reacts with surprise or excitement, so I wanted to include that kind of moment-to-moment feeling.

I tried to include those moments in my work. And, as is always the case with acting, there are also reactions to what is heard (on the set). I am not used to recording foreign films, so I tried my best to feel the atmosphere of the scene as if I was borrowing from the audience.

--Lastly, I would like to ask you about Yang. What is your own impression of Yang?

Numakura: I think she's a very accomplished person (......), but she's still 20 years old and has a childlike quality that hasn't fully matured yet. I think that's probably where his casual touching of women's hair comes from.

Okubo: That's something you don't do unless you are very used to women or not at all. And in Yo's case, he is not used to women at all (laughs).

Numakura That's right. It's like he doesn't know manners (laughs). (laughs) Maybe this is normal for young people overseas, but I think it's amazing that he is able to naturally meet a wide variety of women. When you think about it, you are a very well-balanced person, aren't you?

Okubo Twenty is an age when you are both an adult and a child, for better or worse, and you are at an age when you cannot yet be completely responsible for your own actions. As for Pearl, if Yo was mature enough to take more responsibility for his own actions and what comes next, and if he knew Pearl's situation and said, "I'll protect you, it's okay," I think they would probably be able to be together.

But the fact that he is not that proactive makes me think that he is realistic and still a student. Still, I still like Pearl, and no matter how attractive Mio is, while I like Pearl, I really only see Pearl. That is why Mio is able to treat her in a flat manner and trust her because she is not interested in herself. When you think about it, every scene is up to Yo-kun. I think that this kind of seemingly normal but unusual quality of Yo-kun's is what makes him so special.

SAKAMOTO: He seems like an ordinary college student who could be anywhere, but he may be the most unusual of all. If he wasn't like that, there wouldn't be so many people attracted to him. When he is about to get involved with a troublesome senior guy in his circle, he manages to handle him without damaging the mood of the circle, and he is actually very responsive. He is a person who has the innate quality of "not making people feel bad. I think he is a rare type of person who is liked by everyone as a human being, and everyone can get along with him without putting up walls.

--I think that is a rare type of person who attracts people together.

Sakamoto: That's right. I can see why he is so popular.

--Sakamoto: So, if you were their age, would you like Yoh?

SAKAMOTO That's another story (quick answer).

--I think that would be a different story (immediate answer)!

Okubo I guess it depends on how you meet them.

Numakura Yes. I don't like Yoh with Mio and Pearl by her side.

Okubo If it was Yoh with a little more aggressiveness added, maybe it would be ......?

Sakamoto In the end, we "don't like (Yoh)" (laughs).

(laughs) -- I guess we got to the end of the story (laughs). Thank you very much!

(Reporting and writing by Kenichi Chiba)

Work Information

TV animation "There's Mio Downstairs

＜Broadcast Information

Broadcasting on Fuji Television Network's "B8station" from July 3, 2024 on Wednesdays at 25:25

From July 9, 2024 (Tue), broadcast on BS Fuji every Tuesday from 24:30

The first episode is scheduled to air from 25:40 on 7/3 (Wed.) *Broadcasting time is subject to change.

<Distribution information

Available on Amazon Prime Video, ABEMA Prime, dAnime Store, DMM TV, etc.

<Staff

Original Story : Min Soon-ah

Director : Dong Yi

Screenplay : Gang Fox Workshop

General director : Kim Shin-young

Chief Animation Director : Yeonok Park

Music : Yang Bing-yin

Animation Production: RED DOG CULTURE HOUSE

Japanese Dubbing

Direction: Nobuno Ota

Translation: Reiko Torii, Yue Honda

Sound Production: TOHOKUSHINSHA

Japanese Production: Fuji Television Network, bilibili

＜Theme Song

Opening theme song: SWEET REVENGE "Might Just

Ending theme song: Nornis "Yoru ga akeru tame no tame

<Japanese dubbed version cast

KISARAGI Mio: SAKAMOTO Maaya

Yo Sugiura: Keisuke Kawamoto

Momoi Shinju: Rumi Okubo

Sara Mikuni: Aimi Numakura

Original story: "Downstairs There's Mio" by Min Sung-ah (serialized in "LINE Manga") ©bilibili